National Vision Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ:EYE) Short Interest Up 23.0% in March

National Vision Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ:EYE - Get Free Report) was the target of a significant growth in short interest during the month of March. As of March 15th, there was short interest totalling 6,730,000 shares, a growth of 23.0% from the February 28th total of 5,470,000 shares. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 1,500,000 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 4.5 days. Approximately 8.7% of the shares of the company are sold short.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On National Vision

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Crossmark Global Holdings Inc. boosted its holdings in National Vision by 4.0% during the fourth quarter. Crossmark Global Holdings Inc. now owns 28,676 shares of the company's stock worth $298,000 after buying an additional 1,100 shares in the last quarter. Mercer Global Advisors Inc. ADV boosted its stake in shares of National Vision by 6.1% during the 4th quarter. Mercer Global Advisors Inc. ADV now owns 22,470 shares of the company's stock worth $234,000 after acquiring an additional 1,298 shares in the last quarter. Wells Fargo & Company MN grew its holdings in shares of National Vision by 3.2% in the 4th quarter. Wells Fargo & Company MN now owns 45,211 shares of the company's stock worth $471,000 after acquiring an additional 1,394 shares during the period. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. increased its stake in National Vision by 3.9% in the 4th quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. now owns 44,309 shares of the company's stock valued at $462,000 after purchasing an additional 1,677 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Franklin Resources Inc. raised its holdings in National Vision by 7.9% during the third quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 32,708 shares of the company's stock worth $357,000 after purchasing an additional 2,404 shares during the last quarter.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities analysts recently issued reports on EYE shares. Citigroup raised their price target on National Vision from $12.00 to $13.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Friday, March 7th. Morgan Stanley dropped their target price on National Vision from $14.00 to $13.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, January 21st. Barclays increased their price target on National Vision from $12.00 to $14.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a report on Monday, March 3rd. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price objective on shares of National Vision from $12.00 to $13.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Thursday, February 27th. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and one has assigned a buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $14.00.

National Vision Price Performance

Shares of National Vision stock traded down $0.03 during trading on Friday, reaching $11.31. The company's stock had a trading volume of 2,452,098 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,591,155. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $12.13 and a 200-day moving average price of $11.34. National Vision has a 12-month low of $9.56 and a 12-month high of $20.80. The company has a market capitalization of $891.04 million, a P/E ratio of -56.55, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.27 and a beta of 1.22. The company has a quick ratio of 0.37, a current ratio of 0.57 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.30.

About National Vision

National Vision Holdings, Inc, through its subsidiaries, operates as an optical retailer in the United States. The company operates in two segments, Owned & Host and Legacy. It offers eyeglasses and contact lenses, and optical accessory products; provides eye exams through its America's Best, Eyeglass World, Vista Optical, Fred Meyer, and Vista Optical military, as well as Vision Center branded stores; and offers health maintenance organization and optometric services.